Remember My Name
by littlebee24
Summary: Fame AU. In New York City, teenagers go to the High School of Performing Arts to become a star. But to live your dream, you have to earn it first.
1. The Auditions

_**The Auditions**_

_Suppose all ya ever had for breakfast was onion rolls. Now, all of a sudden, one morning, in walks a bagel. You take a look at it and you say 'What is that?' Until you tried it! That's my trouble! I'm a bagel on a plate full of onion rolls! Nobody recognizes me! Listen, I got 36 expressions. Sweet as pie and tough as leather. And that's six expressions more than all those… Barrymores put together. Instead of just kicking me, why don't they give me a lift? Well, it must be a plot, 'cause they're scared that I got… such a gift! 'Cause I'm the greatest star, I am by far, but no one knows it. Wait! They're gonna hear a voice, a silver flute. They'll cheer each toot, hey, she's terrific! When I expose it. Now can't you see to look at me that I'm a natural Camille, and as Camille, I just feel, I've so much to offer. Kid, I know I'd be divine because I'm a natural cougher—ugh egh ugh—some ain't got it, not a lump. I'm a great big clump of talent! Laugh! They'll bend in half. Did you ever hear the story about the travelling salesman? A thousand jokes, stick around for the jokes. A thousand faces. I reiterate. When you're gifted, then you're gifted. These are facts, I've got no axe to grind. Ay! What are ya, blind! In all of the world so far, I'm the greatest star! No autographs, please. What? You think beautiful girls are gonna stay in style forever? I should say not! Any minute now they're gonna be out! Finished! Then it'll be my turn!..._

"_Who is the pip_—"

"Thank you! Miss…" A man sits at a table in front of a small stage, where a short, brunette girl is standing, head held high. Another man and a woman are also sat at the table, going through several pages of paper and making marks.

"Berry," the girl answers. "Rachel Berry. I wasn't finished. I was just about to break into song."

"Yes, yes," the man says. "But this is the drama department. You don't have to sing for us."

"Of course," Rachel forces a smile on her face. "I have a great singing voice though. And I have some training in ballet, as well. I think it's very important for an actor—especially one of musical theater—to be trained in all disciplines of the performing arts—"

"Yes, Miss Berry, thank you," the man interrupts again. "If you'd like, you can audition for the music and dance departments. But again, this is the drama department."

"Right…" Rachel begins to walk off the stage and towards the classroom door, disheartened. "I hope I'll be hearing from you again. It's been my dream to attend the High School of Performing Arts since I was two weeks old."

"Miss Berry," the man calls. As Rachel opens the door to leave, she turns around expectantly. "You're very talented. I'm sure you will be hearing from us," he adds with a kind smile.

/ /

"5, 6, 7, 8!"

A group of adolescent dancers, with numbers pinned to their shirts, stand in formation in the center of the studio. When the lead dance instructor gives her signal, they begin to move in a synchronized routine. Their bodies twirl, and their legs kick into the air. A few students stare straight ahead at their reflections in the mirrors, determined looks on their faces, while others fail to keep up and are quickly weeded out from the group. Lining the edges of the room, are other young teens, waiting for their turn to dance. Some keep to themselves—either immersed in their own world as they warm-up their body, or watching the others, quietly judging who is good enough to continue and who is not.

A girl sits in a split position on the floor with her blonde hair held up in a tight bun. As she stretches her legs, she examines the other dance studio candidates. Her focus moves towards the three dance teachers at the front of the classroom. She watches as they observe each person currently on the dance floor, their eyes moving from student to student, occasionally looking down at their clipboards to take notes.

"Nervous?" the blonde dancer looks up to see a tall, Asian boy looking down at her.

"No. A little. Yes," she replies, brows furrowed. "I don't know."

The boy chuckles and sits down in front of her. "I'm Mike."

"Brittany."

"I'm nervous, too, if that makes you feel better," Mike says.

"Those teachers do look kind of intimidating," they look over at the teachers who all have stern looks on their faces, completely void of any other emotion.

"Okay, that's enough," one of the women say. "Next group up please."

Mike stands and holds a hand out to help Brittany up. "Good luck."

"Yeah, you too," Brittany replies.

As they both walk to their spots on the dance floor, a girl who was having a hard time in the previous group brushes past Brittany, tears streaming down her face.

/ /

Several students are lined up outside one of the drama classrooms. A boy sits with his legs crossed. He has one hand gripping his monologue book tightly, tapping his knee, with the other hand nervously patting his already well-kept hair.

"You know," a girl next to him says. "If you let your nerves get to you, it'll show."

"I'm not nervous," he says quickly.

"Sure, you're not," she laughs. "Seriously, just breathe. I'm sure you'll do fine." The boy nods his head with a small smile.

"Next!" They hear someone call out.

"Wish me luck," the boy stands up and straightens out his clothes. "Mercedes, was it?"

"Yeah," the girl answers. "Good luck, Kurt."

/ /

In the music room, a boy sporting a mohawk plays the guitar.

A girl with black hair and blue highlights concentrates on playing a classical piano piece.

Brittany and Mike dance through their audition, sweat dripping down their foreheads, but with the looks of quiet resolve.

Outside of the dance studio, a boy in a wheelchair watches them in longing as he passes the room, on his way to his drama audition.

A fast, loud beat can be heard as a largely built boy shows off his drumming skills.

A tan skinned girl warms up her voice, waiting for her turn.

"_I know it's terrible, trying to have any faith, when people are doing such horrible things…" _a young girl with blonde hair and hazel-green eyes recites her monologue. "_But I still believe, in spite of everything, that people are really good at heart."_

/ /

"Santana!" At the sound of her name, the tan skinned girl turns around to find Brittany running down the front steps of Performing Arts. "How'd you do?"

Santana rolls her eyes and flips her hair. "I kicked that song square in the balls. How about you?"

"I think I did okay," Brittany looks down and plays with the hem of her jacket.

"Please, I bet you did great!" Santana says, making Brittany smile. "We're both gonna get in. Don't worry about it."

"Promise?"

Santana holds out her pinky finger. "Pinky promise." As they leave, Santana walks into the hazel-eyed girl hailing a taxi cab. "Watch it, Princess."

The girl just scoffs and holds her chin up high as she climbs into a cab.

Kurt exits the building with a huff, the drummer boy following closely behind. "Kurt, it couldn't have been that bad."

"You weren't there, Finn. It was terrible. I completely choked."

"I think you're just over-exaggerating. Come on, let's go. Mom and Burt are waiting at the restaurant."

/ /

Rachel sits in front of the telephone, staring at it intently. She's been sitting there for almost two hours, waiting for _the call._ Her fingers tap against the table and she begins to think the phone will never ring.

"Sometimes I wonder where I've been…" she sings quietly to herself. She lowers her head and rests her chin on forearms. "We're always proving who we are…"

When the phone rings, she jolts upright, surprised by the sudden noise. She hesitates before she reaches for the phone. She clears her throat as she answers.

"Hello, you've reached the Berry residence… This is she… Mhmm… Yes… Okay… Thank you… I understand… Thank you… Bye…" Her hand shakes as she places the phone back on the receiver.

"Honey, who was it?" One of her dads asks as he walks into the kitchen. He stops when he just sees Rachel sitting by the telephone, her shoulders sagging and an unreadable expression on her face.

She's quiet for a few more moments before she slowly lifts her head towards him, tears brimming her eyelids. "Daddy, I got in… I got in, Daddy…" She says twice. "I'm going to be a star."


	2. Freshman Year: Part 1

_**Freshman Year**_

"Welcome, everybody, to the High School of Performing Arts! Out of 10,000 applicants this year, you are the lucky few to be accepted. So give yourself a pat on the back."

A group of about 200 students sit in the auditorium. They break into applause and then quiet down as Principal Simms begins to speak again.

"Now, I know what you're thinking. I see it in all your eyes. 'I made it. I'm a star. I was the most talented student at my old school, and I'm the most talented student here.' You have dreams. Dreams to become the next big dancer or singer or actor. The next Michael, the next Liza, the next Barbra."

Rachel sits in the front row with a huge grin. She looks around confidently at the other students then back at Principal Simms. A couple rows back, Kurt smiles at the mention of such legends.

"Well, guess what?" Simms continues. The friendly grin on her face disappears. "For most of you, those dreams will never come true."

Rachel and Kurt's faces fall. Finn shifts uncomfortably next to Kurt. The students start to whisper amongst themselves. In the aisle of the auditorium, Artie Abrams sits in his wheelchair with his head lowered.

"_Unless, _you work for it… You all want fame. But fame comes at a cost. Here at Performing Arts, you will learn discipline and how to truly hone your craft. You will also balance your arts classes with your academics classes. Yes, this is a still a high school. You may be a talented dancer or singer, but if you fail English and Math and Science and History? You're _out."_

Brittany's hands tighten around her seat's armrests. Her brow furrows, but Santana gently takes one of her hands to relax her. Quinn Fabray sits in front of them. She stares straight ahead, bored and barely paying attention to the principal's speech.

"So," Principal Simms smiles again. "I hope you all have a great year!"

/ /

"An actor needs to be relaxed. And not stiff as a board." Mr. Farrell says, surrounded by a group of students. "Come on, shake it up you guys!"

He begins to flail his arms and legs around. The circle of students laughs as they follow his movements.

"I feel so stupid," Kurt whispers to Rachel.

She laughs. "Come on, it's fun!" She helps him out by lifting his arm and flapping them like a bird. She, Kurt, and Mercedes start jumping around in a circle like children.

"Very good, you guys!" Mr. Farrell says. He looks over at Quinn who is standing alone with her arms crossed. "Let's go, Quinn. Loosen up!"

"This is stupid," she huffs. "I came here to act."

"And you will be able to act. Once you step out of your box and_ loosen up," _ Mr. Farrell emphasizes. "Rachel, why don't you help Quinn out?"

Rachel sends him a nervous look at first, but then walks over to Quinn. "Uh, just take a deep breath first. It'll help you relax."

"I don't need your help, Treasure Trail," Quinn snaps. When the bell rings, she turns on her heel to leave.

/ /

Finn stares at his copy of _Animal Farm _with a blank look, then flips it over to read the summary on the back.

"I don't get it," he says. "I don't get how a book about farm animals is actually about the Russian Revolution."

"It's an allergy of the Russian Revolution," Brittany tells him. Finn scrunches his eyes, trying to understand.

"_Allegory, _Britt," Santana corrects.

"That's right!" Mrs. Sherwood announces as she enters the classroom. "And after you're all finished reading that book, you will turn in a book report."

"This is bogus!" Noah Puckerman speaks up. "I came here to play music. Not write book reports about pigs."

"You also came here to learn, Mr. Puckerman—"

"It's Puck," he interrupts.

"Remember, _Puck," _Mrs. Sherwood continues. "If you can't pass your core subject classes, you can't participate in your arts classes."

Puck slams his book on the desk as he slumps down in his seat.

/ /

The cafeteria is crowded. Groups of people chat among themselves, sitting on or around tables. A couple of students are scattered around playing with various instruments. When Quinn walks in, she sees Rachel, Kurt, and Mercedes all sitting together. Rachel waves her over, but Quinn ignores her invitation, and brushes past her. She sits down at an empty table, until Brittany and Santana plop down across from her.

"We totally just saw you diss the Hobbit and her fellowship," Santana says, chuckling. "You should have seen her face."

Brittany laughs, "It looked like she went to take her cat's temperature, but then it ran away and eloped with her dog."

"_What?" _Quinn asks. Brittany just shrugs. She looks at Brittany and then to Santana who is just picking at her lunch. "Is there a reason you guys are here?"

"What, you don't enjoy our company?" Santana sneers. "Fine, we can leave if you want."

"No, it's okay," Quinn says as Santana prepares to get up. "I guess you guys are cooler than _Berry."_

"Of course we're cooler than Berry."

Their conversation is interrupted by the sound of an electric guitar. Puck stands at the front of the cafeteria with Finn by his side. They're laughing as other students cheer them on. Finn takes out his drumsticks from his back pocket and starts playfully beating on the table. He moves on to an actual drum set that a boy had rolled out from the back.

They start to get a melody going, and other musicians join in with their instruments. Artie takes out his laptop and plugs it into some speakers. The students' "jam session" is backed up by techno beats from Artie's computer.

"_Ooh whoahhh_," Mercedes and Rachel start to sing, and soon, everyone is dancing.

The crowd of students erupt into more cheers when Mike and his friend, Matt Rutherford, start breakdancing in the center of the room. Brittany gets up to join her friends.

"Tina, come on!" she says as she pulls a quiet, Asian girl from her seat. They climb up on a cafeteria table and start tap dancing. Santana laughs as she watches them.

She turns to Quinn, who is just looking on in amusement. "Okay, let's go. Learn to have some fun."

Quinn scoffs, but reluctantly follows Santana to where Brittany is. She sways in place, until Brittany jumps down from the table and grabs her hand to twirl her. Quinn can't help but laugh, and she's soon dancing and having fun with everyone else. When she catches Finn's eyes, a dorky but cute grin forms on his face, and she sends him a small smile in return.

* * *

><p><strong>an: I really want to aim for much longer chapters, but I just suck at that for some reason. So yeah, I'll be trying to write longer chapters, but don't be surprised when they all end up being about the same length. -_-**


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